STARKVILLE – While the nation was underwhelmed by Auburn as it staved off a huge upset Saturday against Utah State, Dan Mullen took a difference stance.
Auburn coach Gene Chizik, left, and Mississippi State coach Dan Mullen have never discussed "the Cam Newton situation." (AP Photo/Todd J. Van Emst)
“They scored 42 points against a really, really good football team in Utah State,” said the Mississippi State’s coach, whose Bulldogs travel to No. 23 Auburn on Saturday. “… They’re the defending national champs and found a way to win, and in doing so scored 42 points. I take that we’re going to have our hands full with an excellent Auburn football team.”
Mullen cited the Tigers’ “big-play ability” on offense and special teams, which resulted in one kick return for a touchdown and several touchbacks on kickoffs in the 42-38 victory against Utah State on Saturday.
No. 20 MSU (1-0) has lost nine of the last 10 against Auburn, which last fell to MSU at Jordan-Hare Stadium in 2007. Since then, the rivalry has become more known for the recruiting saga of Cam Newton than the on-the-field battles.
Newton famously committed to Auburn in December of 2009, spurning the Bulldogs and Mullen, his former quarterbacks coach at Florida, after raising a cowbell above his head during the Egg Bowl that year. The fallout of his commitment to the Tigers swept the nation and ultimately led to the NCAA discovering that, yes, Newton’s father, Cecil, attempted to solicit money from MSU in exchange for his son’s signature on a national letter of intent. State reported the info to the SEC and Newton went on to win the Heisman Trophy and BCS national championship last season.
Asked by a reporter during a teleconference Sunday if he has ever discussed Newton with Auburn coach Gene Chizik, Mullen said he had not.
“The Cam Newton situation, to me, ended almost two years ago,” Mullen said. “He committed there in December and I never really thought about him much since that day.”
Mullen said he has since exchanged pleasantries with Chizik, and congratulated the coach on bringing a fifth consecutive national championship to the SEC. The two coaches don’t talk much, however.
“Gene is a good football coach and I imagine he does it the right way with his program,” Mullen said. “None of that would ever be a factor, in my mind.”
A few more notes from today’s teleconference:
Will the five suspended players in the season opener against Memphis — DT Fletcher Cox, LT Blaine Clausell, QB Dylan Favre, LB Chris Hughes and WR Malcolm Johnson – be available this week against Auburn? “That’s a possibility,” Mullen said. “We’ll announce that on the day of the Auburn game. We expect them to play.” Running back LaDarius Perkins wasn’t used much in the Memphis game. Was Mullen holding him back for the Auburn game? “We were playing so many players, it just so happened he didn’t get many touches. Same way when you look at Chad Bumphis touching the ball once. It’s just how the game shook it out. There was no intent on any of that.” Mullen is hoping for drastic improvement from a few players this week. “A lot of the times you’ll see, especially with new faces we had to play, a big improvement between Game 1 and Game 2. Now they know what to expect from the game, they had an opportunity to prepare for a game and then do it on the field.”
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